Conduit connector device and conduit system

ABSTRACT

A conduit connector device includes an open-ended sleeve with aligned openings through upper and lower walls of the sleeve for insertion of a fastener to secure the lower wall of the sleeve to a support. A cover member or bridge is inserted into the sleeve between two conduit ends to cover the opening in the upper wall after the lower wall is attached to the support, restricting access to the previously inserted fastener. The ends of two adjacent lengths of conduit to be connected are inserted into opposite ends of the sleeve to abut the opposite ends of the bridge, and the adjacent lengths of conduits are thereby attached to the support.

RELATED APPLICATION

The present application claims the benefit of co-pending U.S.provisional patent application No. 61/150,164 filed Feb. 5, 2009, whichis incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

BACKGROUND

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates generally to conduit, piping or racewaysystems, and is particularly concerned with a combined connector andmounting device which connects two segments or lengths of conduit andalso attaches the connected conduit segments to a mounting surface.

2. Related Art

One well known method of attaching conduit, electrical metal tubing(EMT) and other forms of piping onto a wall of varying construction is asimple pipe bracket. The bracket is a simple strap that forms a halfcircle (or full circle) around the conduit. Bolts, screws, lags, orother fastening hardware are inserted into the wall through the strap.In all the known prior art, the attachment hardware is exposed and canbe removed without interfering with the piping system.

The attachment for mounting or attaching conduit or other piping systemsto a wall or other support surface is normally completely separate fromthe connectors between adjacent lengths of piping or conduit. Withindividuals who are schooled in the art, the commonly accepted methodfor joining pieces of conduit, EMT, and other forms of piping toadditional pieces of piping, for the purpose of constructing a pipingsystem throughout, around, under, or over a building or structure, is touse common compression fittings. These fittings are available atmultiple hardware, electrical and hardware stores.

SUMMARY

Embodiments described herein provide for a combination conduit connectorand mounting device which both attaches adjacent lengths of conduittogether and also mounts the connected conduit lengths to a supportsurface such as a wall, ceiling, floor, or the like.

According to one embodiment, a conduit connector and mounting devicecomprises a tubular bracket or sleeve having an outer wall, an innerwall for positioning adjacent a support surface, opposite side walls,and open ends, and a cover member or bridge designed for slidableengagement in the bracket. The outer and inner walls of the bracket havealigned first and second openings, and respective stop members orprotrusions are provided on the interior face of the inner wall spacedfrom each end of the second opening. The stop members or protrusionscomprise stops for the ends of two conduit segments inserted intoopposite ends of the sleeve. The opening in the outer wall allowsinsertion of a fastener through the outer wall and subsequent engagementthrough the second opening in the outer wall to secure the inner wall ofthe sleeve to a suitable mounting surface or support medium. In oneembodiment, the cover member is of length less than the sleeve lengthand has an end wall and downwardly depending side walls of heightsubstantially matching the height of the sleeve. Once the end of a firstsegment or length of conduit is inserted into a first end of the sleeveto abut one stop member and the inner wall of the sleeve is attached toa mounting surface, the cover member is inserted into the opposite orsecond end of the sleeve and slid along the sleeve into abutment withthe end of the conduit, so that the outer end wall of the cover memberextends over and covers the opening in the outer wall of the sleeve,preventing access to the fastener or interior of the conduits afterassembly. The end of second length of conduit is then inserted into thesecond end of the sleeve until it abuts the second stop member and theend of the cover member.

According to another embodiment, a conduit system comprises a pluralityof lengths or pieces of conduit and a plurality of conduit connector andmounting devices, with the adjacent ends of one or more pairs of conduitpieces secured together by a respective connector and mounting devicewhich is also attached to a suitable support surface. The conduit systemmay also include different connector devices adapted for forming bendsand T-junctions, and for changing from a conduit of a first size to aconduit of a second size.

Other features and advantages of the present invention will become morereadily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art after reviewingthe following detailed description and accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The details of the present invention, both as to its structure andoperation, may be gleaned in part by study of the accompanying drawings,in which like reference numerals refer to like parts, and in which:

FIG. 1 is an exploded view of a combined conduit mounting and connectordevice according to a first embodiment;

FIG. 2 is a sectional view through the connector device of FIG. 1 in anassembled condition;

FIG. 3 is a perspective, cut-away view showing one half of the assembledmounting and connector device of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is an exploded view of the parts of the connector device and theends of two pipe or conduit segments along with a support to which theconnected ends are to be attached using the mounting and connectordevice;

FIG. 5 is a cut-away view of the parts in FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a sectional view illustrating the assembled parts of FIG. 4,with the ends of the two lengths of conduit engaged in opposite ends ofthe connector device and the connector device fastened to the supportsurface;

FIG. 7 is an exploded perspective view illustrating one example of aconduit system using the mounting and connector device of FIGS. 1 to 3along with other interfaces and system components;

FIG. 8 is an exploded view of part of the system of FIG. 7 on anenlarged scale;

FIG. 9 is an exploded view of the 90 degree bend connector of FIGS. 7and 8;

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of part of another conduit systemincluding conduit segments of different sizes which utilizes one or moreof the connector devices of FIGS. 1 to 3;

FIG. 11 is an exploded perspective view of part of the system of FIG. 10including a corner connection;

FIG. 12 is a horizontal sectional view through the corner connection ofthe system of FIG. 10 on the lines 12-12 of FIG. 10;

FIG. 13 is a vertical sectional view through the T-junction of FIG. 10on the lines 13-13 of FIG. 10;

FIG. 14 is an exploded perspective view of an end connector of thesystem of FIG. 11;

FIG. 15 is an exploded perspective view of a reducing 3-way connectordevice of the system of FIG. 11; and

FIG. 16 is an exploded perspective view of a second embodiment of acombined conduit mounting and connector device similar to that of FIGS.1 to 6 but with a modified inner wall or plate; and

FIG. 16A is a partially cut-away sectional view similar to FIG. 6 butwith the top stop plate and inner wall of the conduit mounting andconnector device of FIGS. 1 to 6 replaced by the inner wall with dimplesor ribs as illustrated in FIG. 16.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Certain embodiments as disclosed herein provide for a combined connectorand mounting device for a conduit system which is used both to engageadjacent ends of two lengths of conduit and also to mount the adjacentconduit lengths on a support surface, as well as a conduit systemincluding a plurality of the combined connector and mounting devicesalong with other conduit system interfaces and components. The connectorand mounting device may be used in any conduit or piping system,including secure conduit systems for secure routing of signaling andtransmission lines such as computer, power, communication and similarcables or wires, as well as for other forms of non-secure conduit andpiping for conveying other media such as gas lines, water lines, and thelike.

After reading this description it will become apparent to one skilled inthe art how to implement the invention in various alternativeembodiments and alternative applications. However, although variousembodiments of the present invention will be described herein, it isunderstood that these embodiments are presented by way of example only,and not limitation. As such, this detailed description of variousalternative embodiments should not be construed to limit the scope orbreadth of the present invention.

FIGS. 1 to 3 illustrate a first embodiment of a conduit mounting andconnector device 100. The connector device 100 comprises a sleeve havingan outer wall 50, inner wall 2, and spaced side walls 51, and a cover orbridge member 3 designed for sliding engagement in the sleeve. In oneembodiment, the sleeve may be formed in two parts, comprising an outerpart 1 of U-shaped cross section comprising outer wall 50 and spacedside walls 51, and inner wall or plate 2 which is suitably attached tothe inner edges of part 1 to form a tubular sleeve. Outer member 1 andinner plate 2 are suitably welded, molded, glued, or otherwise affixedtogether to form a sleeve or tube. Although the sleeve is of rectangularcross-section in the illustrated embodiment, it may be of any suitablegeometrical shape and size depending on the shape and size of theconduit to be connected, such that ends of the conduit can be slidablyinserted into opposite ends of the sleeve as explained in more detailbelow.

A first hole or opening 52 is provided in the outer wall 50 of thesleeve, and a second, aligned smaller hole or opening 54 is provided inthe bottom or inner part or plate 2 of the sleeve. The openings arearranged at the center of the sleeve in the illustrated embodiment,although they may be located at different positions in alternativeembodiments. In the embodiment of FIGS. 1 to 3, a stop plate or member 4having an opening 55 is welded on the inside surface of the bottom wall2 over opening 54, so that the openings 52, 54 and 55 are aligned asseen in FIG. 2. Alternatively, the stop plate or member may be formedintegrally with the bottom wall 2. Stop plate 4 has opposite end edges40, 42 which form end stops as adjacent conduit ends are inserted intoopposite ends of the sleeve, as explained in more detail below.

In an alternative embodiment, as illustrated in FIG. 16, a modifiedinner part or wall 150 of the sleeve is provided, in which the weldedstop plate or member 4 with end edges forming stops is removed andreplaced with dimples or ribs 152 formed integrally in the inner bracketplate 150 at locations spaced on opposite sides of the opening 54. Thedimples or ribs 152 in one embodiment are lance bridges formed when theplate 150 is pushed down on a bridge forming tool which pierces orlances the metal at the rib locations to form the bridges or ribs 152.Each rib 152 is a substantially straight rib extending across most ofthe width of the plate 150 at a location spaced to one side of theopening 54, as seen in FIG. 16. The conduit mounting and connectordevice of FIG. 16 is otherwise identical to that of FIGS. 1 to 6, andlike reference numbers are used for like parts as appropriate. Thisalternative may be less expensive since it uses less material and doesnot require welding. Instead of continuous linear ribs 152 as in FIG.16, the same result may be achieved by end stops formed by a series ofspaced dimples across the width of plate 150, or even a single dimple ofshorter length than the ribs illustrated in FIG. 16.

Cover member 3 is a generally U-shaped piece of similar cross-sectionalshape to the top part of the sleeve 100, and of slightly smallerdimensions so that it can engage slidably in the sleeve. Cover member 3has an end wall 35 and spaced side walls 36, and is shown in a workingposition in the sleeve in FIGS. 2 and 3, in which the end wall 35 of thecover member extends over and covers the opening 52 in the outer wall ofthe sleeve after the mounting hardware has been mounted through thebracket and into the medium to which the device 100 is to be attached.The side walls 51 of part 1 have notches 58 at their opposite ends alongwith spaced slots 59 aligned with notches 58, while the inner wall orpart 2 has spaced, outwardly projecting tabs 60 along its opposite sideedges which engage in the respective notches 58 and slots 59 when theparts 1,2 are assembled together as in FIGS. 2 and 3.

The parts of the mounting bracket or connector device 100 can beconstructed of various rigid materials, metals, plastics, epoxy resins,etc. and can be made for various geometrical conduits. The size is alsovariable depending on the size of conduit the bracket is joining andfastening to a mounting surface, such as a wall, ceiling, or floor, orthe sides, tops, bottoms of various items.

FIGS. 4 to 6 illustrate how the mounting and connector device 100supports end portions of two raceways or conduits 60 and secures theconduits to a suitable support surface or support medium 62, which maybe a wall, ceiling, floor, or other support. A spacer 63 may be used tospace the conduit system from the support surface in some embodiments.The spacer can be of various shapes and lengths. Suitable fasteninghardware, such as bolt 64, is used to secure device 100 to the supportsurface 62 through spacer 63, as described below.

FIG. 6 shows the parts in an installed view, while FIG. 16A is asectional view of the central position of FIG. 6 but with the inner wall2 and stop plate 4 replaced by the modified inner wall 150 with dimplesor ribs 152 as illustrated in FIG. 16. Additional mounting and connectordevices 100 secure successive lengths of conduit together at regularintervals, e.g., a connector device 100 installed at one end of 5 feetof conduit which is installed into another connector device at itsopposite end, with the next length of conduit installed into thatconnector device, and so on. Each connector device 100 is secured to thesupport surface 62 by first aligning the holes 52,55,54 with the throughbore in spacer 63 (if used) and then inserting the bolt 64 through thelarger hole 62 in the outer wall of device 100, through the spacer, andscrewing it into the support surface 62 as illustrated in FIG. 6. Theend portion of a first conduit 60 is then inserted into one end of thesleeve 100 until it contacts the end stop which is located on the sameside of opening 54 to the conduit. In the illustrated embodiment, theend stop comprises the first end 40 of plate 4. In the alternativeembodiment, the end stop comprises a rib or dimple 152 formed in thebottom bracket plate 150 of FIG. 16, and FIG. 16A illustrates the endportion of each conduit 60 contacting a respective rib or dimple 152.

The cover member or bridge 3 is then inserted into the opposite end ofsleeve 100 with the end wall 35 adjacent the outer wall 50 of thesleeve, until it abuts the end of the inserted conduit end portion 60.At this point, the end wall 35 of the cover member covers the enlargedaccess hole 52 in the outer wall 35. The end portion of a second conduit60 is then inserted into the opposite end of the sleeve until it abutsthe second end 42 of plate 4 (or the second dimple or rib 152 in plate150, in the embodiment of FIG. 16, as illustrated in FIG. 16A), as wellas the exposed end of cover member 3, as illustrated in FIG. 6. Theopposite ends of the two conduits or conduit pieces 60 are suitablyconnected to additional lengths of conduit in the same way, or to othersystem interfaces, secure enclosures, bend-forming connectors,T-junctions, end caps, or the like. Once installation is complete, covermember 3 restricts unauthorized individuals from accessing andunscrewing the bolt 64 and removing the two sections of conduit 60 fromthe mounting bracket and connecting device 100. Each section of conduitis secured between two devices 100 or between other junction devices, asdescribed below in connection with FIGS. 7 to 13.

FIGS. 7 and 8 illustrate one embodiment of a conduit or raceway systemcomprising multiple conduit segments and joint or connecting memberssecuring the segments together or to other parts of the system, as wellas end joint members or end caps at the end of a run of conduit. In thisembodiment, one or more of the joint members comprise connector devices100 to secure or support end portions of successive conduit or racewaypieces or segments 60 end to end, along with other interface or jointmembers, as described below. Some parts in FIGS. 7 and 8 are identicalto those described above in connection with FIGS. 1 to 6, and likereference numbers are used for like parts as appropriate. In oneembodiment, the conduit or raceway pieces 60 are of small or mini-ductsize and comprise lengths of a solid rectangular tube of around 1.5inches by 0.75 inches in size, but conduit of different sizes may beused in alternative embodiments, along with mounting brackets 100appropriately shaped and sized for telescopically receiving the conduitend portions in the manner illustrated in FIGS. 4 to 6. The connectordevice of FIG. 16 may be used in place of connector device 100 in thesystem of FIGS. 7 and 8. FIGS. 7 and 8 are exploded views (only to thetop level assembly) of one type of installation scenario with the smallsize raceway or conduit 60, showing the parts separated, with FIG. 8showing an enlarged exploded view of a corner portion of the system.

In the scenario of FIGS. 7 and 8, cables or the like are guided throughthe conduit or raceway system from joint member or sleeve 65 at the lefthand side in FIG. 7 to a joint member or connector 65 connected tosecure enclosure or drop box 12 through which an authorized user canconnect to a computer system or network, for example as described inU.S. Pat. No. 6,838,616 of Harrison et al. and co-pending U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 11/709,892 of McCarthy filed on Feb. 23, 2007, thecontents of each of which are incorporated herein by reference.Enclosure 12 may be a user drop box or user interface enclosure, forexample a user drop box or secure enclosure as sold by Holocom Inc. ofSan Diego, Calif. A faceplate connector insert 13 is mounted in the boxand provides a mounting surface for network connectionfaceplates/covers, for example as described in U.S. Pat. No. 7,608,780and Design patent application No. 29/305,071 filed on Mar. 13, 2008, andU.S. Design Pat. No. D580,871, the contents of each of which areincorporated herein by reference. As illustrated in the lower right handcorner of FIG. 7, interface or sleeve 65 is connected to the user dropbox 12 through a threaded nipple 9 which threads into interface 65 andextends through hole 94 in an end wall of box 12. Hole 94 may bepre-made during manufacture of the box or may be made in the field oninstallation of the system. A threaded lock ring 10 is threaded ontonipple 9 inside the box, and a conduit bushing 11 inside ring 10 guidescable into the box and is used to soften any metallic or sharp edges ofnipple 9.

An interface member or sleeve 65 is located at each end of the conduitsystem in FIG. 7. Interface member 65 at the upper left hand corner mayto connect to another enclosure like enclosure 12 or to another sectionof the conduit system via a threaded nipple. Interface member 65 may bean internally threaded square sleeve for engaging over an end of a pieceof conduit 60, with a flange at one end, and may be any suitableinterface device, such as any of the enclosure interface sleeves (INF)sold by Holocom Inc. of San Diego, Calif., including the interfacesleeve as described in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/256,709 ofMcCarthy filed on Oct. 23, 2008, the contents of which are incorporatedherein by reference.

In FIG. 7, two lengths of conduit 60 are secured generally horizontallyend-to-end along an upper region of a surface 62 which may be a wall,although they may be located elsewhere in alternative embodiments.Conduit lengths 60 extend between a first interface member 65 and a 90degree connector 66. A third length of conduit 60 extends verticallybetween the 90 degree connector 66 and the enclosure 12. A firstmounting and connector device 100 forms a connection between the twohorizontal lengths of conduit 60, while a second connector device 100 islocated between the conduit 60 and a horizontal leg 70 of the 90 degreeconnector 66. A third connector device 100 is located between thevertical leg 72 of connector 66 and the vertical length of conduit 60.Each connector device 100 is secured to the mounting surface or wall 62as illustrated in FIGS. 4 to 6, using a fastener screw or bolt 64 whichextends through the opening in the lower wall of the connector sleeveand through a spacer 63 into the underlying wall surface 62.

FIG. 8 is an exploded (top level assembly only) perspective detail viewof 90 degree connector 66 with connector devices 100 at each end, alongwith the associated hardware, while FIG. 9 illustrates the separatedparts of the connector 66. FIG. 8 is derived from FIG. 7 and has thesame corresponding item numbers. As seen in FIGS. 8 and 9, the 90 degreeconnector comprises a hollow tubular section with a right angle bendbetween horizontal or first leg 70 and vertical or second leg 72. The 90degree connector 66 has a flat base 74, a 90 degree cover 75, and acover curve 76. Cover curve 76 has a 3 inch bend radius pertelecommunication cabling standards. All three pieces are weldedtogether during manufacturing and provide a solid housing in which eachleg fits telescopically into respective connector devices 100, as seenin FIG. 8. Other similar connectors may be provided to provide bends atdifferent angles and T-junctions as needed based on system requirementsand available space for the conduit or raceway system.

When the parts are assembled together, the right end portion of ahorizontal length of conduit 60 is inserted into one end of thehorizontal connector device 100 seen in FIG. 8, while the end of thehorizontal leg 70 of 90 degree connector 66 is inserted into theopposite end of mounting bracket or sleeve 100, with the cover member orbridge piece 3 of bracket 100 located between the ends of the conduit 60and leg 70. The vertical leg 72 of the 90 degree connector 66 isinserted into one end of the vertical connector device 100 while theupper end of the vertical length of conduit 60 is inserted into theopposite end of device 100, again with cover member or bridge piece 3located between the ends of vertical leg 72 and vertical conduit length60.

The system of FIG. 7, once assembled with successive lengths of theconduit 60 engaging in the ends of mounting and connector devices 100 asindicated in FIG. 6, and in suitable end interfaces at opposite ends ofa run of conduit lengths, cannot be disassembled for access to the cableinside the conduit at an intermediate point in the run. Thus, theinterior of the conduit can only be accessed at a secure enclosure 12 orother secure housing without actually cutting the conduit 60. Thissystem therefore provides security for the contents and signal linesguided inside conduit 60.

FIGS. 10 to 13 illustrates another exemplary conduit installationscenario in which the smaller duct or raceway 60 of the previous exampleinterfaces with a raceway 78 or conduit system of larger dimensions, forexample the 2×2 secure raceway manufactured by Holocom Inc. of SanDiego, Calif., which is sold under the part name SDS-WM-RCW. Otherraceways or larger dimension conduits may be used in alternativeembodiments. FIGS. 14 and 15 illustrate some individual components ofthe system in more detail. The larger dimension part of the conduitsystem may be a secure conduit system as described in the following USpatents, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference:U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,049,517; 7,053,303; 7,115,814, and 7,183,488, or may beany other conduit of different dimensions. Some parts of the system ofFIGS. 10 to 13 are identical to parts in the previous example, and likereference numerals are used for like parts as appropriate. As bestillustrated in FIG. 11, the raceway 78 comprises a base or channel 18covered by a topcap 19, and these parts are held together by variousinterface components as described in the aforementioned patents, whichare also illustrated in the exploded view of FIG. 11.

Starting from the left-hand corner of the system in FIG. 10 is aninterface sleeve and flange 14. This interfaces between the raceway 78and an enclosure, or another section of raceway 78 via a threadednipple/pipe. Next to the interface sleeve 14 is a raceway lock assembly95 which secures the interconnected conduits together and restrictsunauthorized access to the network lines guided through the system, asdescribed in the aforementioned patents directed to a secure conduitsystem. Another raceway lock assembly 95 is located at the opposite endof raceway 78, next to three way connector 80. As seen in the explodedview of FIG. 11, lock assembly 95 comprises a lock body 15, a topcapstarter piece 16, and a raceway lock connector 17 which is assembledwith lock body assembly 15 and topcap starter piece 16 to provide a moresecure internally accessed system to keep the raceway sealed. Item 18 isthe channel part of the raceway. Item 19 is the topcap or cover of thechannel which engages over channel 18 to form the conduit or raceway 78.A secure raceway joint 20 adds rigidity to all raceway end-to-endjoints. Topcap end-to-end connector 21 securely joins two sections of atopcap 19 and/or similar topcap profile part.

In this embodiment, a generally T-shaped, secure reducing three wayconnector 80 provides a transition between two different size conduits.FIG. 15 is an exploded view of the parts of the reducing three wayconnector. An example of an application for 3 way connector 80 is avertical transition to a small conduit or tube 60 from horizontal runsof a larger conduit, such as a raceway 78 as described above. Asillustrated in FIG. 15, the three way connector comprises achannel-shaped base 28 of the same profile as the channel 18, a cover 29having the same profile as the topcap 19, and an interface sleeve 30,31of suitable dimensions for receiving an end of the smaller conduit 60,which is secured to an opening 82 in channel 28 to form the T-junction.As indicated, the interface sleeve may be made in two parts,specifically a cover 30 of U-shaped cross-section and a base plate 31welded to the lower end of the cover. Base 28 has a rectangular opening82 in one side wall, while the cover 29 has a corresponding recess 84 inone side wall which is aligned with opening 82 when the parts aresecured together. The base has one or more openings 83 for securing to asuitable support surface using suitable fastener hardware, such as bolt64 as indicated in FIG. 12, before cover 29 is engaged over the base.The end of the interface sleeve is suitably welded to base 28 inalignment with opening 82, as illustrated in FIGS. 10 and 13. When theparts are assembled as in FIG. 10, the upper end of conduit or tube 60engages in the end of the interface sleeve 30,31 while adjacent racewaysections 78 or other interfaces may be secured through the upper,enlarged portion of the three way connector 80 via joints 20 at each endof the upper, enlarged portion 28, 29. Alternatively, an end runconnector 85 may be secured at one end of enlarged portion 28, 29, asillustrated in FIGS. 10 to 13.

An end run connector 85 provides an end junction for the secure racewayportion of the system, and can be used with or without the three wayconnector 80. FIG. 14 is an exploded view of the end connector 85, whichcomprises a base 86 of similar shape to the raceway base or channel 18,and an end cap 88 which may be closed on five sides, with an open endwhich receives the end of base 86. Base 86 has a base wall 89 having aplurality of openings 90 which receive fasteners such as bolts 64 tosecure the end run connector to a wall, as illustrated in FIGS. 12 and13. The closed end 91 of end cap 88 may be provided with an opening sothat it can be used as an interface with a section of the smaller sizeconduit 60 via an interface sleeve 65 as in FIG. 7. End cap 88 with asuitable end wall opening may alternatively connect to a modifiedinterface sleeve 92 as illustrated in FIG. 11, or to other systeminterfaces. Sleeve 92 incorporates a 90 degree bend and provides a stepdown from the larger size raceway 78 to conduit 60. As with interfacesleeve 65, modified interface sleeve 92 is attached to an enclosure orto end cap 88 through use of items 9, 10, and 11 of FIG. 7. A suitablehole for this purpose may be provided in end cap 88 via standardinstallation tools/techniques. End run connector 85 can also serve as athrough wall transition point through the wall side of the assembly viathreaded pipe to either an enclosure, another section of raceway 78,another interface sleeve, and/or another modified interface sleeve 92.As seen in FIGS. 10 to 13, three way connector 80 is used in conjunctionwith fasteners 63 and 64; raceway 78, raceway joint 20 and end-to-endconnector 21; and lock body assembly 15, topcap starter piece 16, andraceway lock connector 17. End connector 85 is used in conjunction withfasteners 63 and 64; raceway 78, raceway joint 20, and/or lock bodyassembly 15, topcap starter piece 16, and raceway lock connector 17 toprovide a secure seal.

The mounting and connector device described above provides a connectionor interface between adjacent lengths of tubing or conduit, or between alength of conduit and another component, and also provides a mountingarrangement for securing the connected conduit lengths or otherinterconnected system parts to a support medium. At the same time,access to the fastening hardware is restricted by the internal bridge orcover member. In some embodiments of a system including the connectordevices, additional interfaces such as T-joints, 90° interfaces andreducing T-joints and interface components are provided for addedversatility in secure and non-secure conduit system design andinstallation.

The above description of the disclosed embodiments is provided to enableany person skilled in the art to make or use the invention. Variousmodifications to these embodiments will be readily apparent to thoseskilled in the art, and the generic principles described herein can beapplied to other embodiments without departing from the spirit or scopeof the invention. Thus, it is to be understood that the description anddrawings presented herein represent a presently preferred embodiment ofthe invention and are therefore representative of the subject matterwhich is broadly contemplated by the present invention. It is furtherunderstood that the scope of the present invention fully encompassesother embodiments that may become obvious to those skilled in the artand that the scope of the present invention is accordingly limited bynothing other than the appended claims.

The invention claimed is:
 1. A conduit connector and mounting device forconnecting two conduit segments of a secure conduit system, comprising:an elongate, tubular connecting bracket having a longitudinal axis, aninner wall, an outer wall secured to the inner wall, a first open end,and a second open end aligned with and facing the first open end, thebracket being configured for mounting on a support surface with theinner wall facing the support surface; the outer wall of the brackethaving a first opening spaced from the open ends of the bracket and theinner wall having a second opening aligned with the first opening; afastener member configured to extend through the second opening in theinner wall and to mount the bracket on a support surface; the first openend of the tubular bracket being configured to receive an end portion ofa first conduit segment and the second open end of the tubular bracketbeing configured to receive an end portion of a second conduit segmentaligned with the first conduit segment; the inner wall having first andsecond raised stop formations facing the outer wall, each stop formationextending in a direction generally transverse to the longitudinal axisof the bracket, the first stop formation being spaced a predetermineddistance from the second opening between the second opening and thefirst open end and the second stop formation being spaced apredetermined distance from the second opening between the secondopening and the second open end; and a cover member slidably engagedinside the bracket and extending under the outer wall and across thefirst opening to block access to the interior of the bracket and thefastener member through the first opening when the cover member islocated in a predetermined position inside the bracket over the stopformations; wherein the first and second stop formations comprise stopsconfigured for engagement with opposing ends of respective first andsecond conduit segments inserted into the respective first and secondopen ends of the bracket and the cover member is held in saidpredetermined position between opposing ends of the conduit segments andcovering the first opening to block unauthorized access to the interiorof the bracket through the first opening when the conduit segments andbracket are assembled in a secure conduit system, wherein the covermember is generally U-shaped and has a first wall having opposite sidesand first and second side walls extending from the respective oppositesides of the first wall, the first wall covering the first openinginside the tubular bracket with the first and second side wallsextending towards the inner wall when the cover member is in saidpredetermined position over the stop formations.
 2. The device of claim1, wherein the first opening is of larger cross-sectional dimensionsthan the fastener.
 3. The device of claim 1, wherein the first openingis of larger diameter than the second opening.
 4. The device of claim 1,wherein the stop formations comprise raised parallel ribs formed on theinner wall of the bracket.
 5. The device of claim 1, further comprisinga stop plate having a third opening secured to the inner wall with thethird opening aligned with the first and second openings, the stop platehaving opposite edges extending transverse to the side walls whichcomprise said stop formations.
 6. The device of claim 5, wherein thethird opening is of larger diameter than the second opening.
 7. Thedevice of claim 1, wherein the stop formations are formed integrally onthe inner wall of the bracket.